A National Lottery winner from Penrith has been bringing some early Christmas cheer to carers.
Tracy Birkbeck, who won £370,000 in 2013, formed a Christmas elf ‘hamper task force’ with other winners from across the North West – all from the comfort of their own homes due to current restrictions.
Tracy, together with the other winners, has created more than 100 luxury hampers packed with goodies for the carers at Age Concern Central Lancashire as a ‘thank you’ for all of the carers’ tireless work throughout the pandemic.
Tracy said: “The efforts these carers go to, so selflessly and the sacrifices they make every day, to care and love, is incredible.
“I was absolutely thrilled to be involved in such a heart-warming project to say ‘thank you’ and show our appreciation for all they do.
“I absolutely love Christmas and thoroughly enjoyed creating the hampers. We all need a bit of festive cheer at the moment so it was fantastic to be able to help make Christmas arrive early!”
The winners, who would normally be brought together by The National Lottery in the run-up to Christmas to help support various charities, adapted to the current lockdown by creating a Whatsapp group so they could work from their own homes but share ideas and creations with each other as they made their hampers.
Also joining the festive task force were some of the region’s biggest lottery winners, including Sharon and Nigel Mather, from Bowdon in Cheshire, who won £12 million in 2010 and Michele and Kevin Jones, from Crewe, who won £6 million in 2016.
The hampers, after being quarantined, were delivered to Age Concern Central Lancashire’s Dementia Day Support Centres in Bamber Bridge and Fulwood Preston, aboard a fabulous festive truck.
Set up in 1981, Age Concern Central Lancashire, which marks its 40th birthday next year, is dedicated to helping people across the county to live well and age well.
The support these winners are giving Age Concern Central Lancashire comes as The National Lottery teams up with ITV to encourage people to volunteer in their local community.
Miss Out To Help Out is a new campaign and website where anyone in the UK can get hints and tips on how to get started as well as information on volunteering opportunities nearby from charities and organisations.
For more infomation, visit www.missouttohelpout.com
